This post was originally created in 2019 though it has been updated throughout the years with fresh information. It’s very interesting to see the themes that were added to the list years ago that still remain the top dogs.
If you’re looking for a fast and free WordPress theme, you’re in luck. There are plenty of options out there that can help you create a beautiful and responsive website without breaking the bank.
Understanding that website speed is a critical factor for businesses that want to keep their customers engaged. Slow-loading websites can lead to high bounce rates and lower conversions. That’s why choosing a fast WordPress theme is so important.
In this article, we’ll be discussing the fastest WordPress themes and how they can improve website speed. We’ll also provide recommendations and advice on choosing the right theme for your website.
Astra
Astra is a popular lightweight and customizable WordPress theme that is designed to load quickly. It has a responsive design, SEO optimization, and excellent compatibility with popular page builders such as Elementor, Beaver Builder, Visual Composer, and of course the default block builder. Astra also offers pre-built templates that are suitable for different niches, making it easy to create a professional-looking website.
GeneratePress
This speedy and user-friendly theme has been designed with performance in mind, adding less than 10kb (gzipped) to your page size on installation.
Unleash Your Creativity with Gutenberg and Page Builders
With GeneratePress, you’ll have complete control over your website’s look and feel. Thanks to its compatibility with the block editor (Gutenberg) and major page builders such as Beaver Builder and Elementor, you can easily create stunning, professional-looking content without any coding knowledge.
Compatibility and Customization, All in One Package
If you’re worried about compatibility issues, fear not. GeneratePress follows WordPress coding standards and boasts full compatibility with all well-coded plugins, including WooCommerce. You won’t have to compromise on design either, as the theme comes with over 60 color controls, powerful dynamic typography, and 5 navigation locations. With 5 sidebar layouts, dropdown menus (click or hover), and 9 widget areas, you can easily customize your site to your exact needs.
Fully Responsive and Multilingual, for a Global Audience
In today’s world, a responsive website is a must-have. GeneratePress is fully responsive, meaning it looks great on any device. Plus, it’s translated into over 25 languages by our amazing community of users, making it accessible to a global audience.
Hello Elementor
If you’ve ever used WordPress, you’ve likely heard about the most popular page builder, Elementor.
Built for speed
Boasting a 1/4 second load-time with default assets totaling 6KB is a pretty impressive feat. Please keep in mind that this will increase as you add plugins and different components. Always keep in mind website optimization when building.
Kit Library
Includes 100+ pre-built designs which can be customized to your liking or used as is.
Page Builder Support
The Hello Elementor theme is specifically designed to work with the Elementor page builder plugin, which means you can easily create custom layouts and designs for your website.
Mobile Responsive
The theme is fully responsive, which means your website will look great on all devices, including smartphones and tablets while still looking great on desktop devices.
WooCommerce Support
Offers support for the WooCommerce plugin, which makes it a great choice for creating an online store.
Translation Ready
The theme is fully translatable, which means you can easily translate it into any language using popular translation plugins like WPML or Polylang. Accessibility was also kept in mind when developing the theme, ensuring that modern standards were followed.
OceanWP
OceanWP is a powerful, flexible, and SEO-friendly WordPress theme that can help you create a beautiful and functional website in no time. Whether you’re a blogger, entrepreneur, or online store owner.
Lightweight and Highly Extendable
OceanWP is renowned for its lightweight design and flexibility, which means it’s ideal for creating almost any type of website, from personal blogs to business websites and even WooCommerce storefronts. Thanks to its powerful yet simple customization options, you can tweak virtually every aspect of your site’s design and functionality, without having to touch a single line of code.
Best SEO Practices
One of the most crucial factors for any website is its search engine visibility. OceanWP has been optimized for the best SEO practices, which means that your website will be more likely to rank higher in the search engine results pages (SERPs). With OceanWP, you can easily configure your website’s metadata, schema markup, and other SEO-related settings, giving you complete control over your website’s search engine visibility.
Responsive and Translation-Ready
In today’s mobile-first world, having a responsive website is essential. OceanWP is fully responsive and optimized for all devices, including tablets and smartphones. Moreover, OceanWP is translation-ready, making it easier to create multilingual websites without any additional plugins or complex configurations.
WooCommerce Features
If you’re planning to set up an online store, you’ll be pleased to know that OceanWP comes with several unique WooCommerce features that can help increase your conversion rates. These features include a quick view option, native cart popup, and AJAX add-to-cart buttons, making it easier for your visitors to browse and purchase your products.
Compatibility with Page Builders
OceanWP is compatible with all the major page builders, including Elementor, Beaver Builder, Brizy, Visual Composer, Divi, SiteOrigin, and many others. This means that you can use your favorite page builder to create beautiful custom layouts, and then tweak them to your heart’s content with OceanWP’s built-in customization options.
Extensible Codebase
Developers will love OceanWP’s extensible codebase, which makes it a joy to customize and extend. Whether you’re a seasoned developer or just starting, you’ll appreciate the well-organized and documented codebase, which makes it easy to understand and modify the theme’s functionality.
Best Friend of Elementor and WooCommerce
Finally, OceanWP is the best friend of Elementor and WooCommerce, two of the most popular WordPress plugins. With OceanWP, you can create stunning WooCommerce stores with ease, and then use Elementor to design beautiful custom pages and layouts.
Blocksy
Built with the latest web technologies, Blocksy is a top-of-the-line theme that has been designed with the Gutenberg editor in mind.
Extensive Customization Options for Any Type of Website
Comes with a wide range of customization options that make it easy to create any type of website. Whether you’re building a business agency, shop, corporate, education, restaurant, blog, portfolio, landing page, or any other type of website, Blocksy has you covered. With Blocksy, you can customize everything from the header and footer to the typography, colors and more.
Seamless Integration with Popular WordPress Page Builders
Fully compatible with all of the popular WordPress page builders, including Elementor, Beaver Builder, Visual Composer, and Brizy. This means that you can use your favorite page builder to create stunning pages and layouts, and then seamlessly integrate them into your Blocksy-powered website.
Responsive, Adaptive, and Translation-Ready
Fully responsive and adaptive, which means that it looks great on any device. Whether your visitors are browsing your website on a desktop computer, laptop, tablet, or smartphone, they’ll have a smooth and seamless experience. Additionally, Blocksy is translation-ready, which means that you can easily translate your website into any language.
SEO-Optimized and WooCommerce Built-In
SEO-optimized, which means that your website will rank higher in search engine results pages. Additionally, Blocksy has WooCommerce built-in, which makes it easy to set up an online store and start selling products right away. With Blocksy, you can build a website that is both beautiful and profitable.
Neve
Neve is a lightweight and fast WordPress theme that’s perfect for bloggers and small businesses. It’s highly customizable and comes with a variety of pre-built templates to help you get started. Neve is also optimized for speed and performance, making it a great choice for SEO.
Hestia
Hestia is a lightweight and fast WordPress theme that’s perfect for small businesses and startups. It’s highly customizable and comes with a variety of pre-built templates to help you get started. Hestia is also optimized for speed and performance, making it a great choice for SEO.
